High School rules
by sp-misty
Summary: Ever wondered why Jack is so obsessed with school rules in the movie? Here is my take on it. 16 yearold Jack gets detention and meets some interesting people there.
1. Little note

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to the movie "Four brothers". I do however own future OC's.**

High School rules

**Chapter 1**

"But Ma, I didn't do nothin', I swear" The sixteen year-old said, putting his hands in the air.

"You and I both know that that isn't true, Jack Mercer. And watch that tone" The graying woman shot back. "So how about you tell me the truth, and I'll sign that little note that's somewhere in your pocket?"

Jack crossed his arms and didn't say anything. He figured that if he kept denying it, maybe she would give up. If she didn't sign the note, it'd cost him 4 more weeks in detention, but that was worth it.

"Ah, Ma, let him.. A couple of weeks in detention do the little fairy good, toughen him up a bit." Bobby said from the chair in the corner.

"You keep out of this, Bobby. I let you come back into this house, no questions asked. But that doesn't mean that the questions won't come. Fairly soon, if you keep this up. And besides, that Jack isn't as tough as you doesn't mean he's innocent. I remember you had your fair part of detention, claiming not to have done anything."

"Damn history, always comes back to bite you in the ass" Bobby muttered under his breath.

Jack chuckled. It was good having Bobby back, even if it meant getting called "fairy" on a daily basis. And besides, anything that could keep his mothers "undivided attention" away from him, was welcome.

With Angel in the military, and Jerry back to community college for his third year, Jack had been alone for the last couple of months. And god knows that growing up in Detroit means doing stuff you don't want your parents to see. But hiding them had been hard, being alone and all. This situation just proved that.

"And now back to you. Don't think you're going to get away this easily. But for now, I'll let it be. Dinner isn't going to cook itself. We'll talk at the dinnertable, don't you worry about that!" Evelyn Mercer assured her son.

"Wouldn't dream of it, Ma" Jack sighed, turning around and walking up the stairs.

"Thanks for the help, Bobby. Next time you feel like helping me, go and paint the house. Okay?" Evelyn looked at her oldest son. She tried to look stern, but at the same time she knew that this was Bobby, and he wouldn't change.

"Sure thing, Ma. I'll make sure I never do it again.. Painting the house, I'll leave that to Jack.. He loves coloring." Bobby grinned.

"When are you going to get over that?" Evelyn asked

"The day it ain't working anymore" Bobby said. "Now I'll go see what our sweetheart is up to"

"Stupid ass school. Ain't gonna give me a break. Fuck, didn't do nothin' wrong.. Nothin' bad anyhow. Like they ain't using it themselves.." Jack was lying on his bed, talking to himself and throwing a ball against the wall.

"Look at you, all crushed. Did Ma hurt your feelings, precious?" Bobby came in.

"Shut up, asshole" Jack threw the ball at Bobby's head.

Bobby caught the ball with one hand, and put it in the pocket of his hoodie.

"So, you gonna tell me what's up?" He sat down on the bed, and looked at Jack.

"No.. It's none of your business what I do." Jack retorted.

"It is if you want me to fake Ma's autograph for you." The older guy raised his eyebrows. He knew that if anything would work, this was it.

Jack didn't respond, going over the idea in his head. It would solve his problem, but wouldn't it create a new one?

"Well, fairy, what's it gonna be? Ya gonna tell me, or Ma?" Bobby looked at his brother questioning. He was tapping his foot on the floor, not comfortable with his brother's silence.

"Does it matter? Ma will yell, you will hit me.. I'm fucked whatever I do. Story of my life" Jack stated, still not sure what he was going to do.

"It can't be that bad. You said you didn't do nothin' wrong, right?" Bobby said, a bit worried.

"That ain't what you'll think. Hell, that ain't what the world thinks" Jack looked at the pillow he was now holding.

"It can't be that bad. Fairy, you know I love you, no matter how bad you screw up. Do you need me to let some guys know my opinion?" Bobby put his hand on Jack's shoulder.

"No, this time it was all me. I fucked up, as usual." Jack sounded down.

"Fairy, you're worrying me here. Spit it out, or I'll see no other way than to pull it out of you by force. And that ain't pleasant, lemme tell you." Bobby got up, quasi-threatening his brother.

"Okay, I got caught smoking during third period today. No big deal, but school is making it a fucking big-ass thing." Jack finally cracked.

"Watch your language. Ma'll get pissed at me if she hears you talk like that. 'Bobby, you're a bad influence on your brother.. I know you're tough and grown-up, but mind your language in his presence. I can still make him a respectable citizen.'" Bobby imitated their mother. "Like you're not as fucked up as the rest of us.."

Jack laughed at this. He could almost hear Evelyn say it to Bobby. He still was her baby, and she always tried to protect him against the harsh reality of Detroit. And that included his language.

"But back to you, what do you mean smoking. Do you mean you smoked, or that you 'smoked'?" Bobby air-quoted the last word.

"I was doing both.. I swear. I wouldn't skip just for a joint, Bobby. I ain't like that anymore" Jack looked at Bobby, his eyes big with just a glimpse of fear in them.

"Cracker Jack, ya said you quite the drugs. Whatcha do during lunch? Snore, shoot up?" Bobby nearly shouted angrily.

Bobby stood up from the bed, and started pacing the room. He looked at his brother, who was still sitting on the bed, rocking back and forth. Sometimes Bobby forgot that Jack still wasn't fixed, he was still a bit like the broken little boy that Evelyn took in over 6 years ago.

"Hey, stop that." Bobby said to Jack, referring to the rocking. "Ya makin' me dizzy, little fairy"

Bobby put his hand on the shoulder of the younger boy. Jack immediately cringed, the touch subconsciously scaring him.

"Hey, stop that. No one gonna hit you or hurt you, ya know that. Snap out of it, Jack" Bobby hugged his brother. "Now tell me, what else are you doing? Coke, horse, E?"

"No, Bobby. I ain't like that anymore, I told you. And I never did horse, why would I start now?" Jack finally stopped rocking back and forth and looked at Bobby.

"Why'cha start blazin' up again? You know where it took you last time. And I ain't feeling like holding your hand, wiping your forehead and tucking you in for weeks at a time again. It's not just you that's gonna go trough rehab, ya know." Bobby told him.

"Life sucked, school sucked, I needed to take the edge off." Jack shrugged.

"Life sucked.. Guess what, it's gonna keep sucking until you die. Learn to handle it without drugs. Now give me what you have left"

When Jack didn't move, Bobby took it upon himself to look for the rest of the weed. He threw the contents of Jack's backpack on the floor and searched through them until he found what he was looking for.

"Jesus, you bought quite the bag. Thought life would suck again tomorrow?" Bobby said, voice dripping with sarcasm.

He walked over to the bathroom and Jack could hear the toilet flush. When he came back in, the little bag was empty.

"So, that's done. Let's go and get some fucking food. You lost weight again." Bobby ended the conversation.

Jack just looked at him, angry, and walked down. But deep down he knew Bobby had been right.

**A/N: This is my first Four Brothers-fic. Not my first fic though.. I don't want to turn in to one of those writers that say they only update if they get an amount of reviews, but there is no use in continuing this for me if no one reads it. So, no reviews does equal no updates in this case. But 1 review will make me continue, so it's really not about the reviews! Although I can always use some con-crit, and love to hear what you think about my story.**** Hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	2. Detention

**A/N: Thanks everyone for you reviews! I'm glad you like it so much. I'd really like to mention all of your names here, but then it would be a really long A/N. Don't think that I don't appreciate it though! I hope you all like this chapter just as much. It's not as focused on Jack as the previous one, but some things had to be explained and the situation had to be clear for the next couple of chapters. Btw: Does anyone know how I can make paragraphs? The site deletes my spaces between paragraphs every time I upload the document from Word to the site itself. **

**HaloFin17: Don't worry.. It's a gigantic compliment for me that you thought it was a one-shot. A good chapter should stand on it's own and not on the story, and your response showed it did!**

**SparkFiction: Glad you like the story, but I said I needed to know if people read it. I didn't say I'd update as soon as I had those reviews. I write per chapter, and post it immediately after writing. And I simply do not have the time to update twice or even three times a week. Today is a Monday, and I posted the first part on Tuesday. That means it's not even a week ago. So please, take a chill pill and try to understand where I'm coming from! I'll try and update every week.**

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"Jackie, try to behave yourself today, okay?" Evelyn told her son, while putting her hand on his shoulder.

They were standing in front of Jack's high school, at 8.30 AM on a Saturday. Even though Bobby came through with faking Evelyn's autograph, Jack still had 4 weeks of detention. And on his school, detention didn't mean an hour everyday after school. It meant each day until 6 PM, only Sundays were free. So here they were, ready for his first day of detention.

"Yeah Ma, I will. 4 weeks is long enough for me." Jack reassured his mom.

"Oh, and before I forget, Bobby will come and get you when you're done. I have a case I need to check up on." Evelyn said, while Jack was getting out of the car.

Jack just nodded and walked towards the school-doors. He had gotten detention a number of times, but he still wasn't used to the serene, almost eerie quietness that surrounded the school on Saturday. He shivered. Today it seemed even worse than normal.

Opening the door, Jack saw that the lights in the auditorium were on. That was unusual. Jack walked into the auditorium, wondering what was going on.

"Ah, mister Mercer I believe?" A man in the front asked.

"Yeah, it is. Who wants to know?" Jack responded.

He didn't know the guy, but still he felt a sense of recognizing him from somewhere.

"I'm mister Lesters, and I'll be in charge of detention today. I'll be in charge every day from now on, as a matter of fact." The man answered Jack, authority pouring through his veins.

"Why the fuck would someone take on detention. That guy just ain't right in the head." Jack muttered.

"Might be so, but there isn't anything wrong with my hearing however. I suggest you tone it down, mister Mercer. Otherwise I won't have a choice but to give you an extra week of detention. And please take your seat." Mister Lesters ordered.

Jack did sit down, and looked around. There were 5 other people in the auditorium, and two of them were girls. No matter what Bobby said, Jack was indeed interested in girls, and he figured that he would spent his time in detention observing said girls. The other 3 guys Jack had expected to be there. They were your average thugs, who basically had detention every week.

"Now you are all here, we can start. You will notice a couple of things going differently than normal. We will follow a program here today, and every day. I will explain this to you later on. But first the rules. There will be no talking, no sleeping, no eating unless I say you can. Also there will be no street-slang, foul language or violence. I have no interest that we're in Detroit, and people act like that. In here we're going to behave ourselves like the normal human beings I intend to make out of each and every one of you.

Now for the program. On Saturdays we'll start the day off by watching a film. This film is not supposed to be for your entertainment, and will therefore not be entertaining. It is however a learning moment for each one of you. It will show you how to behave. Then at noon, we will pause for exactly one hour. In this time you can enjoy the lunch in the cafeteria. You cannot however leave the building. After that hour, you will all stay here and do schoolwork. I will go to the office down the hall, and see you one by one. In this time in my office, we will talk about your life, your intentions and the reasons for your behavior.

On weekdays, the afternoon program will be continued. You will make your homework, and I will see you in my office. Are there any questions?"

"Yeah, when did I sign up for fucking counseling?" Jake Dunn, one of the other guys, asked.

"2 mistakes in one sentence, mister Dunn. A) you did not sign up for counseling, and our one-on-one time will not be used for such a purpose. B) 30 seconds after explaining the rules, you already broke one of them. Therefore you will receive an extra week of detention. Any other, valid, questions?" Mister Lesters said calmly

"How about going out for a smoke? Can we do that?" Jack asked, thinking every word over before saying it. He had been talking in slang since he was 6, it was hard to talk in plain English.

"No, mister Mercer, there will no time available for that. Smoking is a sign of weakness, an addiction even. I am planning on eliminating all weaknesses here. Therefore smoking is not allowed." Mister Lesters answered

For a second, Jack thought he saw a spark of anger in Mister Lesters his eyes. But then it was gone.

"And bathroom breaks?" One of the girls asked. Jack didn't know her name.

"Raise your hand if you want to ask something, Miss Bell. The same goes for bathroom breaks. You raise your hand, and ask for permission to go to the bathroom. You will then be escorted to the bathroom." Mister Lester said.

Miss Bell shook her head, not believing what she had just heard.

"You mean that I'm not allowed to go to the bathroom on my own? I have been doing that since I was 4 years old…" She asked.

"I don't care what your parents let you do when you were 4, 10 or 16. You are under my supervision now, and you will listen to my rules." Mister Lesters raised his eyebrows, as to dare her to disagree with him.

Jack had to agree with her, however. This was ridiculous. They were treated like kids, very dumb kids even.

"No further questions? Okay, then we will now proceed to the first part of our program. You are going to watch this movie and pay attention to it. Anyone who does not do so, will receive an extra week of detention. Understood?"

They all just nodded their heads. Who knew what would happen if you opened your mouth and said something. Something here wasn't right, Jack could feel it. This guy wasn't just a regular teacher. There was something about him.

At that moment, the lights went off and the video started. Jack focused on the screen in front of him, thinking of the promise he made to his mother. He would try and follow these rules, how stupid they might be.


	3. Author's note

Sorry, this is just an author's note. My computer crashed last week, and just started working again. Unfortunately for you guys, i'm leaving for Finland tomorrow. I'll be there for four entire weeks, without a computer. And today has been way to hectic to write anything.. I barely found the time to type this. So, i'm afraid you all have to wait an entire month before the next chapter'll be up. I hope you will all stick around for it!

Thanks everyone for their reviews, i'm really happy you like it. And yeah, Lesters is freaky!

FourBrothersFan: There are 3 remarks about school in the movie. The "no running in the halls" is one of them. Later he says "You do good, stay in school" to the same kid. And somewhere in the beginning of the movie Jack says to Bobby that he "should've sticked around longer at school", because that way Bobby could've gotten a job. That last quote might be a bit scrambled up, since i can't remember the exact sentence and can't find my copy of the movie right now. But 3 comments might or might not qualify as obsessed.. I still find it rather strange that a thug from down-town Detroit tells kids to stay in school..But it's up to you if you like the story and the plot, or think the lack of comments about school ruins the story.


	4. Comparing crimes

**A/N: So, I'm back after over 6 weeks! Short author's note this time, since I don't have anything to say or reply to.. Except that ** **Finland**** was AMAZING.. I had the best camp ever. Only bad part was me getting sick for 2 weeks when I got back.. Ah, who cares? On to the story now! It's a bit short, because of me being sick. I'll make it up to you! **

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"Well, did that movie suck ass, or was it just me?" A female voice asked.

Jack looked up from his plate to see the girl he only knew as Miss Bell. It was lunchtime, and he was sitting alone at a table.

"No, it ain't you. Or we are both fucked up the same way.." Jack replied, wondering what she wanted.

"Or not. Can I sit down?" Although she had asked it, she was already sitting down at the table.

"What would you've done if I said no?" Jack looked at her.

"You ain't crazy, so you had to say yes." The girl stated.

"I don't even know your name, so why the fuck would I say yes?" Jack tried to push her buttons.

"Because I've seen you look at me this morning, babe. And it's Vicky by the way"

"Vicky, huh? You don't look like a Vicky to me." Jack stated, turning the conversation away from the fact that he had been looking at her this morning.

He was right about that. The dark haired girl in front of him didn't seem to fit the description of a girl named Vicky. Her hair was pitch-black, and her skin had the color of mocha. In fact, Jack wouldn't have been surprised if her name had been either Carmen, or latino, or She-who-runs-with-the-wind or something like that.

"Ha, ain't that the truth. It's actually Victoriana. My Brazilian mom came up with that one. But try finding someone who can say that, or even worse remember it. So, Vicky it is now." The girl replied with a smile.

Jack took a bite of his food, not quite sure what to say now. Girls usually didn't come up to him to talk this easily.

"So, uh, why are you here? You don't look like much trouble" He finally said.

"Is every sentence you say gonna be about me ain't looking like something?" Vicky shot back.

"Well.. I.. Didn't mean it like that.." Jack stuttered.

"Oh, relax. I was joking. I took the dean's care for a little drive, didn't even total it, but whatever." She said it like it was no big deal.

"You took the dean's car? You ain't talking 'bout that new Porsche he drives, right?" Jack looked at the girl in amazement.

"Of course I am. That baby was asking for me to drive it.. And he left his keys locked away in the second drawer of his desk. So it's his fault, shouldn't have let those keys where I could find them. What about you, hot-shot?" Vicky asked.

"Got caught skipping third period, smoking some stuff. Ain't that big of a deal." Jack shrugged it off.

"You got caught smoking? How stupid can you get?" Vicky responded.

"Hey, don't you lecture me.. You stole a fucking car, for God's sake. Smoking a bit of pot isn't half as bad" Jack said angrily.

"Woah, ain't talking about the smoking… Talking 'bout the getting caught." Vicky held up her hands in defence.

"Not like I planned on it." Jack was still angry with her.

"Listen hot-shot, there is a door next to the emergency exit in the gym. It's supposed to be locked, but that shit broke like 5 years ago. Open it, and you'll find everyone there smoking without getting caught. Dean ain't gonna look there, cause it's locked as far as he knows.."

"Okay, thanks." Jack caved in reluctantly.

"We cool?" Vicky raised her eyebrows questioningly.

"Yeah, we cool." Jack nodded.

"Ladies and gentleman, our hour of fine lunch-time is now over. If you would all be so kind to walk to the auditorium? There you will all do your homework, supervised by miss LaRue here. Also you'll be coming to my office one by one for a little chat. I'll be starting with you, miss Bell. So if you'd come with me, please? That's all, now go to the auditorium." Mister Lester announced.

"Good luck with him! I'm happy I ain't you right now." Jack whispered to Vicky.

"You'll time come hot-shot. If I ain't gonna die in there that is." Vicky whispered back.

"Miss Bell, please stop your conversation with mister Mercer and follow me." Mister Lester interjected.

"Does that guy hear everything?" Vicky asked Jack, rolling her eyes.

"Yes, I do in fact, miss Bell. Now follow me, before I'll be forced to give you another week of detention." Mister Lester's voice had become scarily calm.

Vicky walked out of the auditorium, but not before winking at Jack.


	5. Math daze

**A/N: **

**Sparkfiction: Thanks! And yeah, being sick sucked… **

**Sorry for the lack of updates.. I got myself a brand new computer for my freshman year of university, but unfortunately it didn't like the idea of me being on the internet, nor me typing anything. Basically it wouldn't allow me to get internetconnection, and it didn't have Word when I bought it. But now all is fixed, I won the battle and here's the new chapter!**

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Jack was sitting in the auditorium, trying to do his math homework. It wasn't easy to do though, since he didn't really get math. The class he was caught skipping was actually math. Jack just didn't get the point of fucking around with some numbers, to get a different number. What was wrong with the numbers in the first place?

As he was thinking this to himself, he heard the backdoor open and close again. He looked over his shoulder, after checking if the supervisor didn't see him doing so. He wasn't sure what she'd do if she did see him and he didn't feel like getting another week of detention. He saw Vicky coming in, and walking over to Andrew Dunn. She whispered something to him, and he got up and walked out the door. Jack figured he was now going to the office of Lester.

"How was it?" Jack whispered as Vicky passed by.

"Can't talk, against the rules" She mumbled back.

Jack noticed that she looked weirdly tired. It was almost like something drained all the life force out of her. Jack shrugged, it must've been tiring to talk about yourself for over an hour. Still, the nagging feeling of that morning came back. The feeling that something wasn't right. He shrugged and got back to his math.

About 15 minutes later he heard Vicky ask if she could go to the bathroom. She got the needed permission and got up. Luckily the supervisor-woman didn't think she needed to go with her. When she walked past him, a little note fell on his table.

"Sorry about earlier, read the note" Vicky whispered quickly, still walking.

Jack nodded and opened the note.

_Hey Jack, _

_Dunno what just happened. That chick that told you it was against the rules, ain't me, that's for sure. Felt like a fucking cheerleader. If talking 'bout me does that, I ain't gonna do it again. Damn, there goes my favorite hobby. _

Jack suppressed a chuckle. He didn't think Vicky talked about herself a lot.

When a couple of minutes later Vicky came back, he smiled at her and rolled his eyes. Vicky laughed softly and pretended to put on handcuffs on herself. The weird tiredness had disappeared from her face.

Jack couldn't concentrate on his math anymore though. Well, even less than before. What did Vicky mean by it wasn't her. He thought about it, while tapping his pencil on the table.

The next couple of hours went by in a daze. Jack got in a boredom-trance. He stared at his page, doing nothing whatsoever. The only thing he noticed was the door opening and closing every hour or so.

His trance got broken at 5.30 PM. Mister Lester entered the room and walked to the stage.

"Okay ladies and gentlemen. Although we have half an hour left, I will now pause the office-time until Monday. Mister Mercer and Mister Rowland, you will be the first I speak to on Monday. After that we'll start the routine again. Now, I suggest you put this last 27 minutes to good use." And he walked through the backstage door.

Finally the clock struck 6, and they got to leave. Vicky and Jack walked out together.

"That dude freaks the living shit out of me. Fucking hell, and I ain't scared easily" Vicky stated.

"It ain't easy to not be scared. His eyes throw fire, but he's as cold as ice" Jack said.

"Woah, quite the poet you are hot-shot!" Vicky teased.

Jack blushed.

"There is my brother, see you tomorrow" He said quickly. He wasn't going to tell her he wrote lyrics sometimes.

Jack got into the car, still blushing a bit.

"Whattup Fairy? Got asked to the prom or somethin'?" Bobby asked.

Jack just punched Bobby on the shoulder.

"Fuck, there goes my last hope detention would turn you into a man. You still hit like a girl… Or worse, like Jerry" Bobby laughed out loud at Jack's expression.

"Just shut the hell up and drive. I ain't wanna see this place anymore." Jack said finally, after Bobby had stopped laughing.


End file.
